


Ace of Hearts

by buoyantsaturn



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Angst, Excessive use of italics, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, asexual nico, holy cow its all angst ok rip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-29
Updated: 2018-07-05
Packaged: 2018-12-08 06:47:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11641176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buoyantsaturn/pseuds/buoyantsaturn
Summary: Will’s blood ran cold. Did he do something wrong? Did he repulse Nico so much that he made Nico sick?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> a thank you gift to that anon on tumblr that nominated me for the best au maker for the pjo lgbt awards so thank you for that!!!

Will flopped back onto the mattress, heart pounding, chest heaving, covered in a sheen of sweat, and smiling like he’d never been happier in his life. 

He drew in a few deep breaths before he looked to his side, stretching a hand out and feeling his fingers graze against the bare skin of Nico’s back. Nico was curled up on his side, facing away from Will, and laying awfully close to the edge of the mattress.

Will moved himself closer to his boyfriend, sliding an arm around Nico’s waist and splaying his fingers across Nico’s stomach. He pressed kisses into the skin of Nico’s shoulder. “You’re amazing, you know that?” Will whispered, and thought he felt Nico tense, but he had to have imagined it. Right?  Instead of returning the sentiment, Nico pulled away, reaching over the edge of the bed and picking his boxers up off the floor. He stood, pulling on his underwear, and said a quick, “I’ll be right back,” before he was hurrying toward the bathroom.

Will tried not to think too far into it. He sat up, watching his boyfriend rush into the bathroom connected to their bedroom. The door was pushed hastily shut, but didn’t latch, and Will heard a dull  _ thud, _  followed by the sound of retching. 

Will jumped out of the bed, pulling on his own underwear and pausing only when he was standing face-to-face with the door. 

Had Nico been feeling sick? If so, why hadn’t he said anything earlier? They’d just slept together for the first time, and now Nico was vomiting in their bathroom.  _Why was Nico vomiting in their bathroom?_

Will’s blood ran cold. Did he do something wrong? Did he  _ repulse _ Nico so much that he made Nico  _ sick? _

The retching stopped and Will heard the toilet flush, so he slowly pushed the door open, just enough to stick his head in the room. 

Nico was leaning back against the wall opposite the toilet, curled up into himself.

“Nico?” Will said, barely loud enough for Nico to hear. He kept his head down. “Is there-- Did I do something wrong?”

Every part of Nico seemed to pull further inward - fingers tightening into white-knuckled fists, toes curling against the tiled floor, knees drawing closer to his chest - but he didn’t respond.

Will opened the door further, but stayed in the doorway. “Nico,  _ please," _  he whispered. “I don’t know what I did, and I’m  _ so sorry _ if I hurt you, but  _ please, _  tell me what I did so I can try to fix it.”

Nico’s body began to shake, and Will felt his knees hit the floor, just inside the door.

“I don’t--” Nico started, lifting his head from his knees but keeping his eyes forward. “I’m asexual. I’ve never-- I’ve never  _ wanted to-- _  P-people talk a-about how  _ great _ it is-- It  _ h-hurt-- _  T-they say if you’re w-with the right person-- And I thought I  _ was, _  but--” His body convulsed, and Nico lunged toward the toilet, dry heaving over the bowl. 

Will crawled closer, afraid to get too close. He was unsure if he was allowed to reach out, to rub Nico’s back, to try and comfort him, so he stayed at a slight distance.

“I’m so sorry,” Will told him, hand hovering in the air between him, hesitant to touch, so it stayed suspended. “I didn’t know--” He felt realization like an icicle piercing his stomach. “You didn’t want to,” he whispered, more to himself. “You didn’t want it, and I... _ forced myself _ on you. Oh,  _ god, _  Nico,  _ I’m so sorry." _  Will’s hands flew up to his face, holding his head as the tears started to fall.

Nico pushed himself back from the toilet, having calmed himself down enough that he could breathe again. He didn’t confirm anything that Will said, but he didn’t deny anything, either.

“You should hit me,” Will said after a quiet moment, and Nico’s head finally snapped in his direction. “Or, or scream at me. Call the police,  _ god, _  I deserve to be arrested.”

“Will?” He barely heard Nico’s voice. “Can you...not be in here?”

Will’s eyes met Nico’s, and fresh tears streamed down his cheeks. Of course Nico wanted him gone, he probably  _ hated _  Will now. “Yeah, yeah, of course, I’ll go,” Will told him, gaze dropping to the floor. “I’ll leave, I’m sorry.” He left the room, pulling the door all the way shut behind him, and felt like he might collapse.

He heard the shower start.

 

Nico scrubbed himself raw, scrubbed until he no longer felt the uncomfortable itch on his skin that made him want to scratch until he bled. He scrubbed under the scalding spray until his skin was bright red, and only then did he finally stop. 

He cracked open the bathroom door, peering into the bedroom, and walked through the doorway when he didn’t see Will. He pulled on clean boxers, his most comfortable pair of sweatpants, and his favorite sweater (which just happened to be Will’s). He even put on a pair of socks, only because he wanted to be as covered as possible, even though he was pretty sure he might overheat in the clothes he’d chosen. 

Nico stopped before exiting the bedroom, once again opening the door a crack and watching for signs of Will. He wanted to find Will there - no matter what conversation came, he  _ wanted _ him here - but Nico was afraid that Will might’ve left completely.

When he listened, a voice came from the living room. 

It was Will. On the phone, distraught, crying, and trying to keep quiet. But he was  _ here. _

Nico was as quiet as he could be when he left the room and made his way toward Will’s voice. 

“He asked me to leave,” Will sobbed to whoever he was talking to. “And I didn’t know if he meant  _ the room _ or  _ his life, _  so I’m sitting in the living room, and I don’t know if he’s going to come out here or not.”

There was a pause - Will must’ve been listening to the other person - and Nico was barely concealed around the corner.

“But what if he  _ doesn’t  _ come to me?” Will said. “What if he never wants to speak to me again? He probably hates me now! Oh god, he’s gonna sneak out while I’m asleep on the couch, and he’s gonna send someone over to come pick up his stuff, and I’m never even gonna get to tell him that I love him. I’m  _ so in love _ with him, and he’s going to leave me.”

Nico felt tears dripping down his cheeks, and he poked his head around the corner. He closed his eyes when he saw Will, barely registered when Will said a quick goodbye and hung up the phone, and heard Will rise from the couch.

When he opened his eyes, Will was a few feet away from him. He’d thrown on a t-shirt with his boxers. Will’s eyes were red and puffy. “I thought you were gonna leave,” Nico mumbled, still hugging the wall.

Will’s breath hitched. “I still can, if you want me to,” he said, and it sounded like the words hurt to say.

Nico practically lunged at him, wrapping his arms tight around Will’s back, face pressing into his chest. “I don’t want you to,” Nico told him. “Please don’t go. I love you.”

Will’s arms closed around him. “I love you, too.  _ So much." _

Nico shook his head. “How?”

Will pulled back, holding Nico’s face in his hands. “What?”

“How could you love me?” Nico said, hands fisting in Will’s shirt. “I just told you that you can never have sex with me ever again. How could you still want to be with me?”

“How could I  _ not _ want to be with you?” Will said back. “I loved you  _ way _ before tonight, and sex has nothing to do with it.”

Nico stared at him for a little while, as if searching for the truth in his eyes. “You’re not gonna leave me?”

“I’ll stay as long as you’ll have me,” Will told him honestly, resting their foreheads together. “Will you?”

Nico nodded, dislodging a few more tears from his eyes, which Will wiped away with his thumbs. “Please stay.”

Will’s eyes slid shut as he breathed a sigh of relief. “Can I kiss you?” he asked softly. He had a feeling he was going to be asking permission for a little while into the future.

Instead of answering, Nico rose up onto his tiptoes and pressed his lips to Will’s. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk why i didnt post this when i posted the first chapter bc like,,, it was finished then,,,, but here it is i hope you like it!

Will had convinced Nico to at least change out of the sweater before going to bed. The combined sweatpants, sweater, and the comforter on their bed would’ve caused a heatstroke in no time, regardless of the fact that it was almost December.

So Nico had changed into a plain t-shirt, and the two had gone to bed. There was quite a bit of space between the two of them, and Will tried not to think about it too much as he tried to sleep.

Gradually, throughout the night, as if the two couldn’t help themselves, they drifted closer. They met in the middle, Nico grasping at the front of Will’s t-shirt, and Will with an arm around Nico’s shoulders. 

Nico had woken up with his nose pressing into the dip between Will’s collarbones. While this wasn’t unfamiliar, Nico still tensed as soon as he was aware of the situation. He pushed himself back, far enough that Will’s arm fell from around him.

Will’s hand closed around the sheets just inches from Nico’s chest as he began to wake. “Nico?” he mumbled, blinking his eyes open. His gaze landed on his boyfriend - eyes averted, cheeks flushed, hair soft and rumpled from sleep, the corners of his lips pouted downward in a frown. Will slid his hand across the sheets slowly, seeking out Nico’s hand before it was drawn away from him. “Are you alright?”

“You’re going to be late for work,” Nico said instead of answering, bringing both of his hands close to his chest and pulling the blanket tighter around himself.

“I was going to call in,” Will told him, and Nico’s eyes flickered to his for half a second in question. “For a mental health day, or something.”

Nico’s frown deepend. “You can’t  _ lie _ to your boss about your mental health.”

“I never said it would be for mine,” Will answered softly. “I want to take all the time necessary so that we can talk, and I can make sure that I never do something to hurt you unknowingly. Your mental health is more important to me than one day of work.”

Nico’s eyes flicked back up to Will’s, and rested there for a moment longer before he rolled onto his back and said, “I guess you’d better call, then.”

 

Nico made himself a cup of tea and started up the coffee pot as Will called into work. He settled himself into the corner of the couch with his tea, wrapping a blanket around his shoulders and pulling his legs up to his chest.

Will came out of the bedroom and went straight into the kitchen. “Thanks for turning the pot on,” he called over his shoulder. “Is there anything I can get for you?”

“No,” Nico answered, cradling his mug under his chin and feeling the steam rise up to his cheeks. 

Will came to the couch moments later with his own mug, tucking himself into the opposite side of the couch.

“I wanted to ask you a question,” Will started. Just jumping right on into it, then, Nico thought. “You didn’t try to stop me.”

“That’s not a question,” Nico muttered, eyes dropping to his tea. It wasn’t doing too much to calm his nerves, like the box said it would. So much for that.

“But you know what I mean,” Will said gently.

Nico squeezed his eyes shut. “I’ve never-- Never done... _ that _ before. I’ve had boyfriends, they tried to convince me, even when I told them no. Tried to tell me how good it was and how I would feel after and they would try to tell me that it would be great with the right person.”

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself before continuing. “I thought-- I told myself that  _ you _ were...the right person.”

“Nico,” Will started, but Nico wasn’t finished. 

“So, no, I didn’t try to stop you. And it hurt, and I wanted to stop, but you, you-- You--” Nico couldn’t finish his sentence. He didn’t think he could breathe, but then Will was taking the mug out of his shaking hands and rubbing his cheeks with his thumbs - was he wiping away tears? Nico didn’t know. He didn’t remember starting to cry.

“Nico,” Will said, and it sounded like he might’ve said it a few times already. He stared into Nico’s eyes until Nico looked back. “Never suffer through something because of me, okay? There was  _ nothing _ that I was doing that should have  _ ever _ made you feel like you couldn’t say no. If I  _ ever _ do something that you don’t want me to do,  _ ever again, _  I need you to stop me, okay?”

He waited until Nico nodded before he slowly lowered his hands.

“I-I need you to tell me what I can and can’t do,” Will said. “I mean, explicit terms so there’s no possible way that I’ll get confused.”

Nico blinked a few times, taking in Will’s serious expression. “N-No sex?”

Will cracked a smile, reached up hesitantly to brush back Nico’s hair. “I promise that I will never pressure you into bed ever again, unless it’s to cuddle.” His smile fell away after a second, fingers flying back from Nico’s hair. “Wait, we can still cuddle, right?”

Nico’s lips twitched. “Of course,” he said softly.

“And I can still kiss you?” Will asked, twirling a finger in Nico’s hair.

Nico ducked his head, grinning full-out. “Yes, you can still kiss me.”

“Right now?” Nico’s head snapped up. He was obviously trying to reign in his smile and failing, so he rolled his eyes. “Right, of course, this is supposed to be serious.” Will cleared his throat, wiping away his smile to a stern, almost blank expression. “Just on the mouth, or anywhere?”

_ "Will," _ Nico groaned, still losing the fight against his smile. 

“This is important information!” Will argued.

“Anywhere PG-13,” Nico told him.

Will hummed. “I think we might need to explore that one a little bit, later. I’m not exactly clear on the details, but we can move on, for now.”

“What else do you need to know?” Nico asked.

“Ideally,” Will started, “everything. But for now, just the super big no-no’s should suffice.”

Nico thought for a second. “I... I think the super big ones have been covered.”

“Are you sure?” Will confirmed, and when Nico nodded, his face broke back out into the wide smile. “So we can explore the definition of PG-13, then?” He started to lean closer, slowly, until Nico stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. 

“Not now,” Nico said, eyes wide, and Will moved back immediately.

“See, that’s all you gotta do,” Will said, picking up one of Nico’s hands. He pressed a kiss to Nico’s palm before lacing their fingers together. “How about we find a movie or something, instead? Sound good?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!!

**Author's Note:**

> everybody needs some ace nico u know so i hope you enjoyed it!! thanks for reading!!! and again thanks for the nomination!!


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